Clarissa Bonet, born in 1986, lives and works in Chicago. Her work, exhibited nationally and internationally, explores aspects of the urban space in both a physical and psychological context. Moving to Chicago from Tampa, in Florida, Clarissa is fascinated by the different urban environment and decides to capture its essence throughout her project City Space. It’s not a simple documentation, but a series of pictures that tells her personal experience.
To express a mood or a sensation is really difficult for a photographer because it’s something intangible. So, using the contrast between light and shadows and colors, Clarissa try to communicate her experience in the urban space to the viewer.Fascinated and curious about her work, we asked her some questions.

First of all, could you tell me something about you, your studies and how your interest in photography was born?When I was a teenager I took a photography class in high school and instantly was fascinated by the medium and its ability to transform the world in front of me. It was during this time that I discovered photography as an art form and I knew it was a path I wanted to pursue. I went on to get a bachelors degree in photography from The University of Central Florida and a Masters of Fine art Photography from Columbia College Chicago.

Could tell me about your project and why you decided to focus on the personal and urban space?Moving to Chicago from a southern suburban city was quite shock. I was used to a slow paced, lush, tropical environment and overnight I was transplanted into the complete opposite. It was overwhelming to say the least. The mundane tasks of everyday life as I knew them were no longer a comfort. I had to relearn how to operate in this new environment. Fascinated by the city’s structure, its people, and the landscape.

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

How would you explain the concept of space and how much it can affect a person?The physical space that one operates within and the nature of that space can affect our perception, mood, and understanding of it. I can’t speak for everyone, only to my own personal experience of place. As a newcomer to the urban space, its first impression was dominating and intimidating, and a lot had to do with the physical aspects of the environment—the huge, monolithic buildings, loud elevated train system, and the wash of gray that permeated the city. This physical environment had a huge impact on how I internalized my new environment. In turn, I started making images that explored my new understanding of this place.

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

How do you transform the physical space into a psychological one in your pictures?Light, shadow, color, camera angle, and atmospheric conditions are all tools I use to manipulate my photographs. I aim to create images that speak to the feeling of an experience rather than the documentation of it. By utilizing these tools I can come closer to visually representation something that is intangible.

How do you choose the place where you shoot? which features should it have?I chose the locations I shoot for many different reasons. Often I stumble across the location while I am wondering the streets and notice a feature that is striking, like the way the light illuminates a building, exaggerating its facade and exuding power over the pedestrians. Other times I have an idea for an image and I need to find a location that speaks to my concept. As part of my practice I spend hours walking the surface of the city, experience the place and feeling, the energy of the street. It is during this time that I generate a lot the concepts for my work and find shooting locations. I carry a sketchbook for notes and an iPhone to take snapshots of people, places, or things that pique my interest. Then in my studio I solidify my ideas, plan the shoot, and then return to the street to shoot the final image.

How important are the colors, the lines, the shadows for you?These elements are important components in the work. I use them as tools to manipulate the environment around me. Recently I have been thinking a lot about line and how I can use light and shadow as a means of mark making. By choosing to photograph at very specific times of the day or from specific angles I can manipulate the way in which that space is perceived. This act of mark making is something that I have been thinking a lot about recently.

How do you express through your pictures the feelings of the characters?The characters in my images don’t have feelings, but I hope the image evokes a mood or feeling for the viewer. My images are based on my personal experience of living in the urban environment. In a way, I see people in my photographs as stand-ins for myself. I use light, color, and atmospheric elements to help convey the feeling that a specific experience evoked, for instance the way it felt to have your groceries spill all over the street and feel as if there is a spotlight on you; or the way it feels to emerge out of the subway and feel disorientated; or the way in which the city melts away into a fog as you listen to your headphones, oblivious to what is going on around you. It is these mundane yet poignant experiences of everyday that I try to express in my work.

Which is your favorite picture from city space and why?Choosing a favorite image is very difficult. If I had to choose one, I would have to say it would be the image Spilt Milk. Mainly because it was the photograph that set the tone and direction of the whole City Space series. Once I made Spilt Milk I understood moving forward what direction the project needed to go in. So it would be my favorite image because of what it represents for me, a breakthrough in the work.

Split Milk From the series City Space – Clarissa Bonet

Final question, what are you working on now and what are your plans for the future?Over the five years I’ve lived in Chicago, my interests and perception of the urban space have shifted. I see this project continuing for quite some time, and I think it will be interesting to see how it changes over time. I have also been working on another body of work that images the city at night. I’m interested in the way our perception of buildings shifts from day to night. During the day a building is solid and often seen as a whole and not the sum of its parts—like the hundreds or thousands of people that operate with in its walls. But the shift from day to night reveals the presence of those inside by the light emanating through the window, in a way creating a kind of cosmos on earth.